A Watery Kind of Love
by Hi-my-names-Alice
Summary: Lovino is a mermaid-ahem, merman! And Antonio is a prince. Moved from old account! Rated T, but that could change ;)
1. Chapter 1

Alice: Hey! Re-posting this story on my new account, sorry for the super-long wait…

Romano: No one cares.

Alice: Missed you too. I don't own Hetalia!

/./././././.././././././.

It was a clear night. You could see the diffracted moon beneath the deepest of the ocean's waters. At least, that was what Lovino could infer from the view of his window. It was then that he decided it was a good night for singing. He picked up his little harp, and threw on his cloak. He then reached down under his bed and grabbed the key he had stolen from the night guard last week. However it wasn't for a door, no, Lovino quietly unlocked his window, and slipped out into the watery night. Yes, if you hadn't guessed it, Lovino is a Mermaid, excuse me, merman. A prince of the kingdom of the people of Atlantis, actually. Not that he cared, the only one the people, more so his father, recognized as prince was Feliciano. But who wouldn't recognize the better son? Feli could paint, trade, speak, charm, everything a kingdom would want in a king. All Lovino could do was sing, maybe dance a little. Why should he care about pleasing people if all they cared about was how much power he had, not to mention the riches. But he wasn't thinking about any of those things right now. Right now he was sitting on a rock a bit close the shoreline, looking up at the pretty moon, strumming the harp, and singing.

Antonio had never been much for parties. Sure, with his friends it was a good time, but stuffed up in a big room with stingy old people while wearing an uncomfortable dress suit wasn't his idea of a party. He had taken to bringing his flute with him on his escapes as of late. His dog had also enjoyed the walks with him, so there they were, walking along the shoreline. The moon was out, and you could see all of the stars. There was a slight fog along the ocean's calm surface.

"Look Oso! No waves tonight, you know, when Nana used to tell me stories she would always tell one about an underwater city. It was mi favorito! She said that when the ocean was calm, it meant that una sirena, a mermaid, was close by."

Oso barked in response.

"Well mi amigo, maybe there's one around here!"

Antonio laughed, and continued to walk, not knowing how true his statement was.

Lovino had just started a new song when he heard something monstrous. He thought back to when he would sneak pictures and objects off of boats as a child. One time he had heard the same sound coming from a beast on four legs. He had read about it somewhere. A dog? Yes, that's it. Lovino looked around. The bark had come from behind the rocks, on the other side of the island. He yearned to get closer and maybe catch a glimpse but he knew it was a bad idea. He went back to slowly plucking his harp, forgetting about the dog, and sang a melody his mother had sung before she passed away. It had always been his favorite.

Antonio was about to turn back, and make his way to a nice bath at home, but he stopped when he heard a faint hint of music. Motioning for Oso to be quiet, he made his way farther up the shore. The music got louder, and Antonio realized someone was singing. It was a slow song; he could hear the harp playing with light touches to the strings. The voice sounded lonely, almost sad. He longed to move closer, to hear more of the beautiful voice. It was almost hypnotizing to him. He approached the rocky shoreline, and turned the corner to the other end of the shore. He saw a faint silhouette against the stars. Antonio was sure this person was the owner of this wonderful voice. But before he could speak to him, Lovino turned around. Terrified of the man, he slipped back into the water, hiding behind the rock he was sitting on.

"No, please! Esperate! Wait!"

Antonio stepped onto the rocks, determined to get a glimpse of this person's face. Unfortunately, since Lovino had stopped singing, the sea had become restless again, and the rocks became slippery. It was inevitable that he would slip. And slip he did. Lovino jumped as he heard a thud behind him. He looked over to see The man lying on one of the rocks, slowly slipping into the ocean. He didn't know why he did it, and he couldn't have told you if you asked, but he did it. Lovino pulled the man off the rocks, and swam him to shore. He almost left him when the dog started to bark again, but he decided he could stay a little longer after it started licking him.

"Stop it! Damn it, that tickles!"

Antonio's face was dirty from the fall, and a bit banged up, but he would be fine with a warm bath or two. Lovino took a cloth from the man's pocket, and wiped his face with sea-water, humming softly to himself. The man looked peaceful, and handsome.

'Handsome? No. No, no, no! Bad Lovino!'

He slipped the cloth back into the man's pocket, and filled a shell with water to wash his face off. Despite the voice inside his head, he wondered what color the mysterious man's eyes were. The dog nudged his little hand, begging to be pet.

"It's okay, your master will be fine big guy."

Oso yipped in response. Lovino jumped when he heard the man groan.

"Shit! I have to go!"

He slipped back into the ocean, with a small goodbye to the dog. Oso ran barking to the shoreline, sniffing around for the nice merman.

"Oso? What happened? How did I get here?"

Oso kept barking at the water. Antonio was puzzled, but what else was new? He sat up, a splitting headache accompanying him. As he did so, a shell fell off his shirt. He picked it up, and held it in his hand. It was a little rough on the outside, but the inside was pink and orange like a sunset.

"Lo hermoso… (It's beautiful)"

Finally noticing that Oso was still checking out the water, he walked over.

"What is it Oso? You see a fish or something? Come one, let's get back home."

Lovino watched from behind his rock as their shapes faded into the darkness of the beach.

'What nice green eyes.. Wait no!'

Lovino swam down until he reached his bedroom.

No one even knew he had left…

"Of course. Even if they did, not like they would care. Bastards, all of them."

So heavy lids met, and Lovino fell into a restless slumber, wondering what that handsome man was doing at the moment. Little did he know, Antonio was doing the same thing.

…

/

Alice: Ahhhhhh good memories. I remember starting this story.

Romano: Can't wait til you end it!

Alice: Anyways, to all my followers that I'm Pming about this, sorry if you don't care for it anymore, but I wanted you to know where it is!


	2. A Chance reincounter

Alice: Hey! Thanks for all the follows, and faves, and reviews! I hope I'm satisfying y'all!

Spain: Definitely satisfying me. Fusososo.

Romano: Shattup! Alice doesn't own this shit, now get on with it!

Alice: Alright alright, cranky Grandmano, fine!

…

/three days later/

Lovino woke to his least favorite sound. Feliciano was whining again.

"But how come we can't have pasta for breakfast to?"

"Feli, we had it last night!"

There was father, trying to be sweet to his brother again.

"Please?"

"Well, I suppose…"

Lovino grabbed his food, and brought it up to his room. Sometimes he just wasn't in the mood to listen to his family. He looked at his food, and just decided he wasn't hungry. Not that he was every hungry after thinking about his family. He put it outside the door after pushing it around a bit. They should at least think he was interested in the food.

He couldn't help but wonder what that man was doing. He wondered in general what the lives of humans were like day to day. He didn't doubt however that they were much more interesting than his.

"Prince, it's time for your visit to the people."

Lovino turned to see one of his guards behind him,

"Yeah yeah, I'm coming."

Lovino followed the guard to the balcony where, like rehearsed, he would just step out, wave, and go back to the palace. He swam down the stairs, next to his brother.

"Come on, idiot, dad'll have a cow if we're late."

"Okay! I can't wait!"

They stepped onto the balcony, facing the thousands of citizens.

"Good, boys, give a wave to your people."

Feliciano smiled and waved happily to the crowd below, earning a cheer from the watery bottom of the courtyard. Lovino gave a half-hearted salute, and swam back inside. To be blatantly truthful, the crowd hadn't noticed his entrance.

/…

Antonio sat in a cushioned chair as his caretaker spoke.

"I don't know what you think you were doing! Mios Dio Antonio! You could have gotten lost, robbed, and we would never have found you, nunca! (never)"

Antonio sighed, and rubbed his temples. His head still hurt from the fall on the rocks, but a nice bath had done him some good.

"Si, si, lo siento tío. (yes, yes I'm sorry uncle) I won't do it again."

Santos, Antonio's uncle, looked suspicious. But the feeling passed as he made his way towards his nephew.

"Now that we are talking, I feel the need to discuss something muy importante contigo (very important with you.) Don't you ever think it might be time for you to settle down? Find a nice princess, or prince? Sobrino no sé. (nephew I don't know) But maybe there should be less of the sailing and more of the parties. Less adventuring, more socializing!"

Antonio groaned, he really wasn't in the mood for this talk right now. But being himself, he put on a happy enough face.

"Uncle, I think I'll go for a sail this afternoon. It is my birthday today, I think I should get to have maybe a little divertida? (fun)."

Santos rubbed his forehead, but grinned.

"Ah yes, of course you may. Happy 18th birthday Tonio."

/…

Lovino was in the garden restringing his harp. The wiry strings often became out of tune after not being used for a while. Luckily, if there was one thing he was remotely good at, it was music. Music in general, he liked sound, he liked silence. Those were his paintings, his social skills. All through music, he conveyed his feelings in a silent way, yet the melody covering them was heard clearly. No one in the palace really knew he liked to sing and play. They all assumed he stayed in his room and read. Which he did to some extent. He read all sorts of books, but mostly about the surface world. He could tell you how many toes there were on a human, or maybe hoe they cook meat over fires at night. He was just going back up to his room when he was stopped by his and Feli's father.

"Si papa, what is it?"

Roma looked unhappy.

"Lovino, did you go to the surface world last night?"

Lovino bit back a laugh, he went to the surface world EVERY night!

"Si, just to look around."

Roma sighed,

"I want you to stop going up there, you have everything you'll ever need down here."

Lovino really didn't have a huge affinity for the land above, but it was more interesting than anything he had ever experienced down on the floor of the ocean.

"And what exactly do you want me to do down here? Please the people? Yes, because they certainly enjoy my company. Impress people with my amazing paintings and cooking skills? I think your 'perfect' son already has that covered."

Lovino was a bit more hurt when his father didn't correct him,

"Come on, tell me! Tell me Feli isn't better off to rule than I am! Tell me that he hasn't always been your favorite!"

Lovino could almost feel himself turning colder than the water around him. His father couldn't meet his stone gaze.

"Just. Just go to your room."

"Gladly."

It was the moment Roma turned his back on his son that he realized he was making a big mistake. He wanted to turn around, to say that Lovino was wrong. But he just had nothing to say to his son who needed so much to hear something.

Lovino was just getting ready to sleep when he remembered the eyes of the handsome man. He looked over to window, and beckoned a small fish over.

"You think tonight's a good night? For the surface?"

The small fish which had no comprehension of what the boy was saying, just nodded and blinked.

"Alright, I'll go then."

Despite what you might be thinking, Lovino is not as stone cold as he acts.

To put it simply, no one ever tried to socialize with him, so he had never thought once that anyone wanted to. Though it wasn't intentional, Lovino had developed a sense of security in being alone.

'You don't try, you don't get hurt.' A motto he had heard somewhere before that he chose for himself.

So that is why, he was contempt with watching the surface world from the safety of his ocean around him. Of course it was just his luck, A ship was out, and you could hear the party from a mile away. Curiosity got the better of him, and soon he was hauling himself up to get a better look at the festivities. Lovino watched in awe as the sailors danced on their legs, swaying back and forth to music played on instruments he only knew from pictures.

After a few minutes of watching, he had begun to lower himself back into the water, but then he heard that familiar barking sound.

"The dog? If he's here, than-"

"Antonio! Come, celebrate!"

Lovino saw the handsome man step out from under the deck, following his dog into the party.  
"Ah, I think I should take it easy, it looks like a storm coming."

'What a nice voice…' Lovino thought, unaware of his senses telling him to stop staring.

"Please Prince! It's not every day you turn eighteen!"

'Eighteen? That's only two years older than me…. No, stop it right there. Don't even think about thinking about him!'

Ah, but there was his laugh, it tinkled like bells, and it made the merman feel warm inside. But all that aside, he was human, and Lovino didn't concern himself with humans.

Little did he know, Oso was concerning himself with something else!

Before Lovino could turn his head, Oso was barking happily at having rediscovered his friend.

"Shh! Shut up!"

But Oso kept barking, trying in earnest to grab his master's attention. This was the man who saved him after all.

"Oso, what is it? Do you see a fish?"

Lovino tried to get away, but try as he may, Oso kept his paw firmly upon Lovino's hand, keeping his from slipping away into the water. Antonio walked over and kneeled down…

/…

Antonio peered down over the banister of the ship.

"Sure is beautiful isn't it? I know you wanna go for a swim, yo tambien mi amigo (I do to my friend) but Tío would have a fit, it's getting dark anyways, let's go back to the party.

/ …

"Whew, that was close."

Lovino rubbed his sore hand as he slid back beneath the waves, content with going home and taking a nice long sleep. After all, it had been a very exciting night for the young merman!

/./././././././

Alice: Hey y'all! Sorry it wasn't a very interesting chapter, but I had to develop the character's stories bit by bit, so it's not confusing later, trust me.

REVIEWS MAKE ME HAPPY (SO DO CRAYON DRAWINGS OF CAPTAIN AMERICA IF YOU WANNA SEND ME ONE)


	3. Friends?

Alice: Hey guys, sorry it took so long but it's here!

Please, if there's anything you want to see really badly, put it in a review and MAYBE I'll use it?

Romano: Alice doesn't own this crap.

/./././.

Lovino's heart was still pounding as he swam further and further into the depths of the ocean. His hand was still throbbing a bit, and he couldn't use his fingers there very well.

"That goddamn dog is too affectionate."

He tried not to swear too much, but sometimes they just slipped out.

Antonio had been right about a storm, because the water around Lovino began to grow darker, a sign that the sky was getting blacker above. He tried not to, as it was wussy, but he worried for the sailor's safety. Storms on the seas were rough in this part of the sea, even if they were close to shore.

"Maybe I should just. No! Well-NO WAY."

He began to hear the crashing thunder, and flashes of lightning. He swam a little closer.

All of a sudden, Lovino jumped at the shout of a young man who was most likely aboard the ship.

"The mast!"

He poked his head through the rolling waves, and was shocked to see the mast of the ship fallen over due to the harsh winds. The men were quickly evacuating into life boats, and rowing towards shore. Lovino looked around for Antonio, and was frightened to find nothing. He almost called out, but remembered he wasn't supposed to be there. He ducked underneath the waves. Across a few pieces of debris there was a figure. Lovino swam over to him with ease, and saw that it was indeed Antonio.

"Idiot, getting yourself drowned!"

He checked his pulse, and swam him up above the waves, the boats were gone. Lovino looked down at his unconscious face, and he began to swim him to shore.

"Damnit, you should wear less clothing!"

He blushed for a second after that one…

After five grueling minutes of nonstop swimming, they were finally on shore. The tide was calmer now, it had just been a quick but deadly storm.

"This is the second time this week you reckless man!"

Lovino was exhausted, he put Antonio's arm around his shoulders and pulled him onto the sand, as his fins dried off, they slowly began to form into legs, one of the perks of being a merman was the advantage of land and water. Unfortunately, the King had a bad running in with a few humans, and so he had actually forbid any mermaid or man from using their legs. But Lovino wasn't about to start listening to anything his father said. But he was too tired, he needed to rest.

And so, with Antonio's arm still around him, Lovino curled into the warmth of the sleeping man's chest, and fell asleep.

/./././././././

Antonio woke with a start, coughing up what little water he had swallowed. He felt a weight on his chest, and that was when he realized what position he was in. The sun had not yet risen, but could be seen over the horizon of the sea. He looked down to see a man, no, a merman? A merman with his arms wrapped around him in an embrace?

"I must be dreaming. Please don't wake me,"

Antonio's eyes wandered over the features of the sleeping person of the sea. Could this be he same creature he saw that night, the one with the tail? It was a slim chance, as this person did have legs, but he would have to hear his voice first. The beautiful being began to stir, and Antonio pretended to be asleep again, afraid of startling his savior.

"What? Oh, that's right, are you still asleep?"

Antonio almost opened his eyes, It WAS the voice he had heard all those nights ago!

"Damn, you sure know how to sleep."

He felt the warmth leave him, and opened his eyes a crack to see the man returning to the water.

"Wait! Por favor!"

/./././.

Lovino turned around, terrified as the man grabbed his hand.

'Oh god, he's going to-'

Lovino gasped as he was pulled into an embrace.

"Thank you, for saving me! I was wondering if you could tell me your name?"

Lovino struggled to form words, he didn't know how to react to the hug.

"Uh, agh, hey! Let me go!"

Antonio immediately complied.

"It-It's Lovino. Be more careful next time you go to sea, it will not hesitate to swallow you."

Antonio blushed as Lovino spoke, his voice got softer until it stopped.

"I heard you singing that night long ago. It was beautiful."

Lovino blushed a coral shade of red.

"You lie, I have to go."

Antonio did not dwell on the first comment, as it was false.

"Can I see you again?"

"No."

"Por qué?" (Why?)

"Because I said so."

Lovino shrugged away from the man with a still prominent blush, and shrunk away to the surf, his legs turning to fins as soon as he hit the water. Antonio watched the tail swish back and forth, pulling the small man into the waves. Lovino was almost completely submerged when he heard the man's shouting.

"I'll wait for you! I'll come everyday!"

'Stubborn idiot.'

Lovino thought as he smiled the smallest smile he could.

/././../././././

Alice: AGH! BRAIN PLEASE MAKE BETTER CHAPTERS!

Brain: WHAT MORE DO YOU WANT FROM ME!

Alice: I hope you liked it. Review plz


	4. So much in Common

Alice: Hey faithful readers! Sorry this one took so long to crack out! I was having some writer's block, and it took a little time to get out of it! But we're back baby!

Romano: Yah shut up and finish the story.

Spain: I think Lovi means he's really excited to see how you continue this! I know I am!

France: My perverted radar is going off!

Alice: Sorry, I don't think we'll have very many steamy scenes, I was meaning to ask my readers about this! MATURE CONTENT YAY! This story is rated T, but I can always change that! It's gonna be up to u guys! I have never tried my hand at writing 'steamy' scenes, I know how to of course, but I never want to make a reader uncomfortable! Please in your review (If you leave one!) tell me if you want there to be scenes like this, or if u **really** don't.

I decided I would put a warning before each scene if there were a near tie.

There will still be romance don't get me wrong! Just tell me okay?

France: I think you know where my vote is going…

Alice: … Right… I DON'T OWN THIS SERIES!

Finally introducing new Characters!

/././././././…/./././././.

"Francis? Have you noticed anything strange about Antonio lately?"

Mathieu gazed at Toni as he walked down through the back entrance of the palace and made his way downwards towards the shore behind the rocks. Francis also looked up for a brief moment, but looked back to his papers afterwards.

"Well he seems as happy as ever, that's for sure."

"I don't know, he seems distracted as of late, well I mean more so than usual."

"Yes, I do sense some sort of pinkish aura coming from him every time he sighs. What is your diagnosis?"

Francis was chuckled and began to apologize for teasing him, but Mathieu looked onto the surf just disappearing behind the shoreline.

"Love. I think he's in love."

Francis smiled warmly, and stood up, wrapping him arms around the younger male's waist. Matthew blushed, but slid his arms around the man's shoulders as well. They left themselves in that embrace for a few seconds before pulling away and getting in a few quick kisses, though chaste, sweet and meaningful nonetheless.

"And how would you know so much about that Cherie?"

"I have a great teacher."

"Francis! Francis!"

The two stopped abruptly, and Mathieu stepped away from his lover, eliciting a frown from the older man. Down the stairs came a frantic uncle with business on the urgent side.

"Have you seen the prince?"

The two guests glanced at one another, deciding whether or not Antonio wanted to be found. It was a simultaneous no.

"I'm sorry we haven't. Why?"

"Well he's going to be late for his meeting with the prince of England, who, if I may remind you, is a very big asset to have in the form of marriage alliances!"

Mathieu blushed at the somewhat blunt implication the man was making, but before he could look back up, Santos had sped away looking for the dreamy-eyed Spaniard.

Mathieu looked back down, a little guilty for lying to the man, but gentle fingers lifted his chin.

"I'm sure Tonio will be grateful for our cover."

Mathieu still looked a bit glum about the whole situation, but held Francis' hand nonetheless as they began a stroll through the palace gardens…

/././…/./././…/./././…

Antonio never got tired of waiting. Well, he had to admit he was getting a little bored. But if there was one thing Antonio was not, it was a liar. He had said he would wait at this spot everyday, and gosh darn it, he was going to wait!

"Lovino! Lovino where are you? Please come out? Pretty please? Pretty please with tomatoes on top?"

He sighed. That was the fifth plead. He was about to sit down against the large rock again, but as he turned around he heard a small voice.

"What the hell is a tomato?"

Antonio turned around, really hoping that this wasn't his imagination as it had been so many times before.

"Lovino! You came! You came, you're here, actually here you're-"

"Yes! I'm here okay? I get it! Happy bastard… Now answer my question!"

"What? Oh si! A tomato… Ah, how to describe it hm. Well it's this red fruit! It's pretty, and juicy, and it tastes great!"

Antonio was climbing closer to the pools of water where Lovino had planted himself. As he got closer he saw Lovino take in his expression of utter happiness and bliss. It made his cheeks tint.

"You know it looks a little like your cheeks now! Fusososo!"

"Shut the hell up! Liar! There's no way a fruit could be that great anyways."

"Oh but it is! Son muy deliciosos!" (They are very delicious!)

"Then you better bring some next time."

"Next time?"

Lovino cursed at his slipup, but Antonio was almost in too much bliss to notice. Next time? Lovino was going to come back! But now wasn't the time for his petty thoughts, he had a guest to entertain!

"Well I look forward to it! I'll bring a whole basket if you want!"

"Yeah, you do that."

As if he had been given the okay, Antonio began to rattle off every little think in his head. As soon as he finished one thought, before Lovino could answer, he had begun another in its place. He could almost see the faint lines of a smile whenever he said something particularly funny, and it made his palms just a bit clammier.

"So why don't your people come out of the water and walk to?"

"My idiot father had a big falling out with some humans before I was born. He held the grudge, and passed the law that we weren't allowed to use our legs ever again, end of story. Not that I'd ever take orders from that barnacle of a king."

"King? Oh, so that would make you a prince! Like me!"

Antonio couldn't for the life of him figure out why Lovino had splashed all that water at him…

So they talked, and they sat. They talked, and they moved. They talked and talked about almost anything that interested them, half of which the other had never heard of! But they talked nonetheless! Antonio could've sworn that at one point he almost saw the corners of Lovino's mouth twitch. Sort of like he was trying to smile, but didn't want to. That day, Antonio promised to himself. He would make Lovino smile one day, then, hopefully he would make him smile for the time afterwards they spent together.

It was a while later that Lovino said something about the sun setting. Antonio only noticed the way the orange rays reflected upon the water, and danced up Lovino's skin, staining him with beautiful light.

"Hello? Are you listening to me you bastard!"

"Wha-? Oh, sorry Lovi. I probably have to get back to the castle now."

"Lo-vi-no! Not your dumb Lovi-crap! Yes, now go away."

"I will. But, I'll come back tomorrow! And you'll come too won't you?"

"…Maybe."

Antonio walked back to the castle knowing that a maybe was better than a no. Of course Santos was horribly distraught at Antonio's absence at the meeting with Arthur, prince of England, who to be honest Antonio didn't like in the least. He apologized for his tardiness, and made his way up to his room.

He wished tomorrow could come sooner…

./././././.././././…

Alice: There you have it, I added some Franada, and soon to be Usuk. I hope that's okay

France: Peeeeerrrrfect…

Alice:… Well I have places to go, people to see… Away from you… Far away… REVIEW IF YOU WANT SOMETHING. I MIGHT MAKE IT HAPPEN!


	5. First Hurdle Jumped

/././../././././../././././../././

Spain woke up bright and early that morning. Of course he stayed in bed for about an hour after that. So he actually 'got out' of bed at around 8:00am.

"Ah, if only the sun could set faster."

After a lovely breakfast consisting of an omlett, and a glass of tomato juice, Antonio made his way to his closet. His very 'VERY' Large closet.

"Let's see, I know I have them here somewhere…"

Last year Antonio had asked for a pair of worker's clothes, and being the prince he had of course gotten them. His uncle couldn't figure out why, but whenever he asked the Prince would shake his head and whisper that it was a secret. But it was no secret to the men and women in the fields what Antonio was doing.

"Ah, buenas días Marisol!" (Good morning)

"Si Príncipe, buenas días." (Yes Prince, good morning.)

Antonio enjoyed his days in the field, it brought him closer to his people, and closer to his favorite food. Tomatoes. One would say he had quite a liking for them. After his promise to Lovino to bring some, he decided he wanted to pick the fruits himself.

"Lo siento Marisol, necesito algunos tomates. Puedo escogelos?" (Sorry Marisol, I need a few tomatoes. Can I pick them?)

"Si, si of course!" (I'm beginning to think y'all know what si means right?)

Antonio grinned in thanks, and made his way to the tomato plants on the other side of the field.

It took a while, but he finally found the perfect bunch of ripe red fruit for he and his friend to enjoy.

" I have some time before we need to meet, I think I'll take a nice siesta then!"

It was indeed a nice day for a mid afternoon nap. Antonio had no trouble falling into a nice peaceful rest, dreams included. It was around five thirty when he woke.

Well, woke. Was woken up. Same thing right?

Well as he opened his eyes with a grimace, he came face to face with a young man a little taller than himself. Of course he was sitting, so maybe they might be- I DIGRESS.

"Sorry man, but do you know if Arthur is in there?"

Antonio, still sleep disoriented, blinked again.

"Where?"

"In the castle silly! Arthur Kirkland? Prince?"

Oh, that guy. Antonio himself hadn't really paid attention Arthur for the majority of his visit. They ate together, but only because it was 'required'. They held polite conversation, but something was telling him the Prince really wasn't there. He always had a faraway look, the Spaniard himself knew it, because he held the same gaze occasionally as well.

"Yes, he's there. But-"

"Please tell me he isn't married yet!"

Realizing he was still in his peasant clothes, Antonio decided not to reveal that he himself was the man Arthur was supposed to marry. He really had no desire to marry Arthur. What was a bond like that without love?

"No, not yet. It's-"

"Yes! Thank you stranger!"

Wow, It was really hard to get a word in with this guy. Just as Antonio was about to ask the blonde foreigner his name, he had sped in the direction of the castle with a faint shout of 'I'm coming Artie!'.

"Well, I suppose that woke me up! Look at the time! I hope Lovino shows up!"

/././../././././../

"Lovino! Lovino!"

"Yeah yeah I'm right here idiota."

Antonio stood up form the rocks, and looked over the water, spotting the little body a few feet from the edge of the shore.

"Ah there you are! You see I was taking a siesta, it's like sleeping in the afternoon, and then this man woke me up! He was asking about this other guy, so then I told him-"

Lovino listened as Antonio recited the earlier events to him, trying to catch as much of it as he could.

"And then I said to myself, hey! Lovino probably wants to try the tomatoes now right?"

He then looked into his basket and pulled out what looked like a small red… Thing.

"It looks dangerous…"

"No I promise they're great! Deliciosos!"

He could tell by the look on the merman's face he wasn't assured.

"Hm… Ah, I know! Here we can split it. I'll eat some with you so you know it's really not life-threatening!"

Using the pocket knife in his trousers, he cut a chunk for each of them. Stepping out onto the furthest rock, he passed a piece to Lovino, who eyed it carefully.

"Okay, you go first."

Antonio nodded and proceeded to chew on his slice, smiling as the juice slid down his throat. Afterwards he opened his mouth to show he had swallowed.

"Alright, now you try it!"

He watched in anticipation as Lovino slowly licked the surface of the pulpy inside of the tomato. For a moment the tongue, going back and forth over the fruit, made him blush. Just thinking about Lovino's mouth made Antonio a little jittery.

'Lucky tomato.' He thought.

He snapped out of his stupor when he heard a gasp from Lovino, who had taken a bite from his slice.

"It's-It's…"

"Si? Si!?"

"So, mmm. Ah, I mean."

Lovino seemed to realize how he was acting, and with a face as red as his tomato piece, he turned away.

"Good, it's alright, I guess."

Antonio smiled, a bright smile, glad that he had made his friend happy, even if… Well…

"I brought a basket of them you know? You can have as many as you want!"

Lovino blinked, clearly surprised.

"For me? I can have them? But don't you want them?"

Antonio laughed,

"Well I love them, but you see Lovi, I think it kind of goes like this. If I have something I love, and someone else loves the same thing, if we share it, won't our happiness double?"

Antonio looked at Lovino with a bashful expression, a little embarrassed at how cheesy that must have sounded.

Lovino looked up. He leant forward and grabbed a tomato. He then swam out a few feet, but before dicing into the depths of the ocean, he looked back.

"That's. That's a nice way of thinking."

He was gone before Antonio had the chance to say goodbye. But right now Antonio couldn't do much of anything except stare at the water and try to remember what his name was.

"He smiled…"

Once his body was out of it's state of shock, he laughed.

"He smiled! I got him to smile!"

He jumped up, took the basket, and walked back to the castle, clearly content with his day.

'And what a beautiful smile it was…'

He thought as he closed his eyes for the night.

./././././…/././././…/././././../././././././…/./. /./.

Alice: So tired, so much writer's block…

Alfred: Hey at least you got me in!

Alice: Yah; next chapter will be an extra… Get excited y'all!

Arthur: I'm surprised your bad mood a few days ago when you started this didn't affect the chapter!

Alice: Me to! Well Review please, tell me what you want to see happen!

Love you all my favoriters and followers and reviewers! 3


	6. Intentions

Alice: HIIIIII, so I know I mentioned this chapter would be an extra, but I don't really have time for that. So here's more of your fave coupley woupley.

Romano: She doesn't own shit.

././././././.././././../././././.

Lovino awoke bright and early the next morning to someone closing his bedroom door. He sat up to face one of the scullery maids standing in front of his dresser.

"What the Hell?"

"G-good morning, Prince Lovino."

"Is there a message for me?" He motioned to the scroll in her hand, and she blinked, as if she had forgotten she even had a hand.

"Ah, yes!" She un-rolled the small piece of paper,

"The King requests your audience in his study after supper."

"Jeez, why not just send for me now?"

"His majesty has a meeting with the high court until dinner."

The girl seemed to be trembling when Lovino swam over and beckoned for the note, which she placed with a shaky hand into his waiting palm. The prince paid no mind to her as he gave the note a once-over.

"Why the High Court? Escaped convict? Or Matters of the other region?"

"The former, your highness."

He began to brush his hair out of its bed-ridden state. The maid stood and waited for further instruction.

"You may go. And inform the cooks I will not be attending supper tonight."

"But your majesty-"

"I have a meeting of my own to attend. And if my father asks, tell him it is of my own personal importance that I attend said meeting."

"Y-yes, your majesty."

She turned to leave the room.

"Hey, are you new in the palace?"

"Yes, sir."

He turned around to face his window.

"That's all. Go away now."

She all but motor-boated out of his quarters.

He finished with the brush, and pulled the seaweed over his bed of sponge. He had forbidden the maids to clean his room, lest they find his books, or his harp. When all was in place he swam quietly out of his room for some breakfast. Before he rounded the corner to the kitchen, he paused as his name passed his ears.

"You did heed our warning yes?"

"Well the way you talk about him would make anyone tremble before him!"

They were talking about him. About how scary he was. They kept chatting, describing things that weren't true. Things blown out of proportion, and Lovino listened, until he didn't want to hear anymore. Finally He swam out from the around the corner while on e of the ladies was in mid story.

The room froze.

The castle maids stared, horrified, as the prince came right into the kitchen, and they knew they had been caught. As he approached they bowed their heads, waiting to be punished, or even fired.

But nothing happened.

Lovino swam right by them, grabbed an apple, and was on his way soon after. The newer girl began to cry, talking about how she needed this job. But the others reassured her the King would not listen to the older twin if he chose to tell.

Lovino knew it was early, that Antonio wouldn't be at their spot for at least two more hours, but where else did he have to go?

Oh and how he wished he had said something back in the kitchen.

././././././././././././././././././././././././.

"Antonio! Despierte! (Get up!)"

The prince woke to his uncle standing over the edge of his bed.

"Ngh, Tio? (Uncle?). What time is it?"

"Long night? It's nine thirty Antonio! You have a fitting in negative ten seconds!"

"Ah, sorry, I didn't sleep til late, ahem."

Memories of Lovino's smile had kept him awake for a multitude of time that night. He sat up in bed and stretched his sleep-sore muscles.

"No time for stretching, you need to be fitted!"

"Si, si, I'm coming!"

He pulled on a rather large white shirt (easily removable for the fitting) and an old pair of black slacks. He arrived in a few minutes to the royal fitting room (The royal family of France had insisted they have one, so as to slightly further their fashion sense. Which, as of late had improved, but certainly not thrived). The tailor was unsurprised at the prince's lack of shoes, he always argued that at scheduling's such as these it was pointless to wear shoes, seeing as he would have to remove them to pull pants after pants on.

"Alright, right up here your highness. The sooner we start the sooner we finish."

Despite being a squirmer, the clothing was put on in a matter of minutes and Antonio turned to look into the tri cut full body mirror. (Don't worry; the description of the outfit comes in another chapter.)

Well shoot, he looked good.

But the admiring of all in the room was abruptly cut short, as Antonio began to take off the garments. In his haste he almost forgot to remove his socks on his way out.

"Why the rush?!"

His uncle called after him, but to no avail. Something had been up with Antonio the past few days. He seemed, happier, if that was even possible, seeing as he was considered the happiest person in the country. As of late he had felt a little, downtrodden, what with all the marriage proposals, dinner-parties, alliance meetings, it could really take a lot out of a guy. But then when he met Lovino… Well not everything had changed, but he felt like there was something to look forward to at the end of each day!

"Francis!"

He tapped rapidly on the door, and opened the door after his third knock.

Kind of a mistake.

Francis had a smaller boy (Mathieu? He couldn't quite remember) underneath him, leaning on the kitchen table. One of the boy's arms was draped over Francis' neck and it looked as though they had tangoed onto the tabletop.

"Ah! Ahm, your Highness, I can explain!"

He stuttered, and pushed the French-man off of himself, straightening up immediately afterwards. Francis merely chuckled and turned his head.

"I fear you have interrupted a moment, my dear prince."

"Yes, my apologies, but I need some tomatoes. Very urgent you see."

He looked over on the counter, and spied what he was looking for.

"I only need two."

"Of course I can spare you some, mon ami! (my friend)."

In a few minutes the fruits (he had been given five despite his objections) were placed safely in his satchel, and he was walking out the door.

Mathieu came out from around the corner of the hallway and lightly slapped Francis' arm.

"You heard him knocking, I know you did."

He grinned and cupped the small red face beneath his, delivering a smoldering kiss that left Mathieu's lips as pink as his blushing face.

"You liked the thrill of being caught, I know 'you' did."

He struggled to get out of the grip, his blush travelling down his neck at the embarrassing assumption. But it was in vain for in another second he had been scooped up and laid against the tabletop again. After discovering it was futile to resist, well, he cooperated of course.

"Now where were we, cheri? (Dear)"

"One more word monsieur and I'll be sleeping in the guest room tonight."

/./.././././././././.././././././././.././././.

Antonio knew he was early, but he had nowhere else to be, so why not be there?

He threw his boots off and ran down the rocks to the shoreline, where he sat on a rather large bolder and put his satchel down next to him. Looking out onto the other smaller rocks he spied a small figure laying farther out. At first he had thought it might have been a dead body, but upon further looking it wasn't a body at all! It was Lovino! The sun kissed his red-violet scales, all the way down to his tail fin. Antonio scaled the large rock, making his way closer to the small body. He looked so peaceful, napping there, his hand lazily grazing the water, keeping him in his mer-form. The prince had never seen something so intimidating, but intriguing at the same time. He sat on the rock about five feet away, so as not to startle the boy when he awoke. When he was sufficiently seated, he began to whistle. It was an old song that his mother had sung to him when he was a child (idk, imagine a tune.). After a moment, he began to sing the words that had graced his memories like water along a fish's back.

'_Silencio, mi amor,_

_No puedes hablar._

_Mano a mano,_

_Nos dedos tocar.'_

_(_not gonna translate cause it's probably wrong, but it sounds nicer in Spanish, no?)

With his eyes closed, and his mind lost in the song, he didn't notice Lovino's eyes drifting open.

_/./././././././././././././././././.././._

He woke to the warmth of the summer sun, and the faint sound of the small waves lapping against his rock. But there was another sound too. The quiet sound of a song. The voice was low and smooth, almost like the motions of the waters below. At once his head told him to go back to sleep, to be lulled by the airy music escaping mystery lips. But his curiosity overwhelmed him and he sat up, stretching as he did so. He turned to face Antonio, who had stopped singing and was smiling at Lovino like a puppy.

"Ah, you're awake! That's good, I mean, not good if you wanted to nap more, which is fine, but I mean good for me, and you if you didn't want-"

"Shut up. That song, what was it?"

He blushed a little bit,

"Well it's a lullaby my mother sang to me, not as pretty as your voice, but it was comforting."

Lovino blushed and retreated back into the water, the feeling of his legs transforming keeping him from continuing his time on the rock. Antonio merely watched as the merman resurfaced and splashed some water in his face.

"My voice is not 'pretty'." He grumbled into the flat water.

"I suppose you're right."

"I'm ALWAYS righ-"

"It's beautiful."

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that."

Antonio just laughed and took out the tomatoes, Lovino's eyes lit up and his mouth began to water.

"Are those… The things?"

"Yes my scaly friend, to-ma-to. I saw how much you liked them last time so I thought, well I thought-"

"Learn to finish your sentences. And while you're at it, hand me a tomato, please."

Please? Had he really just said please? By now Lovino had been able to work out that this prince wasn't the brightest angler fish in the deep, why did that make him feel the urge to be nicer? People weren't nice to him, well other than Antonio… Was that it? Antonio, who was kind, after only knowing him for a few minutes, honestly, truly kind. When people were kind to him, it had an underlying meaning. Feli wanted his share of dinner, 'friends' wanted a piece of his wealth, his status. By now Lovino had learned that it was better to get it out with than not.

"What do you even want with me?"

The words paused Antonio mid-bite. It almost stung to have them leave Lovi's mouth.

"Que? (what?)"

"Why are you being so nice to me? Is it because I'm royal? Because I'm an unseen mystery of the sea? If all you want is to mount me upon a wall I can assure you I swim much faster than the average dolphin-"

"Woah, woah! Slow down amigo. To get something out of the way first, the last thing I want to do is mount you on a wall. That sounds painful and, well, fatal, haha."

The look of suspicion didn't leave the merman's face.

"Your status does nothing but make us seem more alike, the two of us, princes!"

"You're either really stupid, or full of shit."

"I may not be the smartest, but I'm honest, and if it ever counts for anything, it counts right now. Check my pockets, you'll find no weapons."

He emptied his pockets of twine, and a couple keys to the rooms in the castle. Lovino examined the shiny metals carefully, interested more than frightened. The look of wonder on his face made Antonio's gaze falter to his eyes, a swirl of green and something like purple, but darker. Lovino looked up into his eyes, another pair of green, but darker, straight emerald, not hiding anything, much like the owner they belonged to. They kept their eye-contact long enough for Antonio to get out a last sentence.

"I think you're the greatest mystery I'll ever know."

The words snapped Lovino out of his trance, and he turned around, treading water for a minute, trying to remember what he was going to say, or was it his name he was forgetting?

"W-well, alright fine I'll take your word for it."

He swam close again and held out his small hand.

"Friends?"

Antonio looked at the hand as if it were a present from Santa, he settled his own beneath it and laid a light kiss upon his fingers, still wet from it's oceanic sheath. It was gentle, it was innocent, and it was perfect. And so was the sky that day, which they stared at for the next hour, examining the clouds, claiming they resembled cats, or fish, or even pots and pans. Their game had only been interrupted by the fact that the sky was darkening and the clouds had blown away to reveal the heightening of the crescent moon.

"I, I have to go."

"So soon?"

"It's been five hours, Antonio."

"Ah, I see it has been hasn't it?"

Lovino began to paddle away, but turned back to wave at the human.

"Tomorrow then?"

"Si, tomorrow."

It couldn't come soon enough.

However before the next day could come, Lovino remembered he had a meeting with his lovely father.

"Father?"

He looked into the slightly ajar door of his father's study. And there his father sat, in his large Reef seat.

"Lovino, I need to talk with you about something."

"What have I done wrong this time father? Because if you're wondering about the curtains on the third floor, that was allllll Feli."

"Have you been speaking to a human?"

The question took the prince by surprise, and it showed on his face.

"Why is it important?"

"You know why. I made that law to keep us safe, we are a myth to them now, and it's a myth we should keep up!"

"Father not every human is blood-thirsty and cruel! All those shitty stories we hear as children are lies, and all the wonderful things they have up on that land aren't going to hurt us!"

"You're just like your mother, and if you don't have caution you'll end up just like her!"

"Don't talk about her like that."

"I loved her and she chose her own fate. Now if I hear anything else about you going to the surface-"

"What so you have people following me around now? Classy."

The king clenched his fist and closed his eyes for a moment.

"No more, Lovino. I won't discuss this with you. All humans have only bad intentions and you're too precious to be lost to them."

"I think you're confusing me with the golden child. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a bed, and it's calling my name."

"I mean it, no more surfacing."

"Good night, father."

They stood, both stock still as they had been for the entire conversation, and Lovino turned around without a second thought, rushing away to his quarters. The rays of the moon shimmered in through his window, making him more exhausted than he thought he was to begin with. He didn't like fighting with his dad. But not even that could ruin his mood. All in all, he thought positively for once, it had been a good day.

He fell asleep wondering what Antonio was doing at the moment.

./././.././././././././././././../.././

Alice: I hope you liked it?

Francis: Oh, I liked it veeeery much honhonhonhonhonhonhon.

Alice: Oh my God shut up you're a pervert.

Antonio: But, you're the one who wrote it…

Alice: READ AND REVIEW THE NEXT CHAPTER WILL PROBABLY BE A LITTLE BIT CAUSE PRESEASON STARTS SOON!

Lovino: Avoiding the accusations as usual.


End file.
